Feb 2, 2003
EDITOR'S NOTE: In just two full seasons on College Hill, junior power forward Mike Farrell has turned himself into the Leopards' most consistent player. Farrell, an American Studies major, has agreed to provide www.goleopards.com with a weekly journal entry, talking about his life as a student-athlete. Farrell came to Lafayette from DeLand, Fla. where he attended Father Lopez High School. He is the first non-senior team captain since 1997-98.Â
What is going on? That is the response that I had last Friday night, while at a certain university (Lehigh), I was getting "pantsed." This is perhaps the most interesting thing that has ever happened to me during a game. So for this journal I will go through some of the funnier times I have had while playing this great game, we'll call it my Desert Island Top 5 Basketball Memories. Finally, now I am truly inspired to write…
Number 5 all time:
During one of my high school games, senior year, I was closed out from the gym. In the Father Lopez High School gym there are two big doors on either side of the basket that open up to the outside. I was going after a loose ball, saved it to one of my teammates, and as they went on a fast break, one of the opposing players and I collided, opened up one of the doors and went outside of the gym. He ran in and closed the door on me, and held it for a couple seconds so that I couldn't get back in. Didn't make me too happy at the time, but now as a look back on it, it just makes me laugh (especially since we won).
Number 4 all time:
OK. To understand this one is to try and understand my assistant coach at Father Lopez my freshman year. Coach Ray Ridenour is brilliant, a great basketball coach, and just last year was inducted into the Florida High School Sports Hall of Fame. But he may be the most intense basketball person in the world - including Bobby Knight. Urban legend has it that once his team turned the ball over and then didn't follow up on the play, instead just giving the opposing team an uncontested lay up. He immediately called a timeout, and proceeded to have his team run suicides the entire timeout. He was very demanding of his team to say the least. But on this particular occasion, we were at a Christmas tournament in Pierson, Fla. I was a young player and liked to pull out the full-blown Kareem Sky Hook, but on this particular play, I missed everything entirely - the rim, backboard, I didn't even hit the net. The ball just sailed over the hoop right to the other team. Coach Ray went nuts; his shirt was already untucked, his tie undone. He started to climb the bleachers up to my parents - who knows what he was thinking, but I think he was going up there to ask them, in not such a nice way, why they would keep a child that would take a shot like that. Just seeing this big, big man raging up the bleachers was a sight to see. He decided that it wouldn't do any good to harm my parents so he just sat back down and put his head in his hands and shook his head.
Mike Farrell's Journal Archive
Â
2003-2004 Season
 • April 14, 2004
 • April 9, 2004
 • February 23, 2004
 • January 26, 2004
 • January 5, 2004
 • December 11, 2003
 • November 20, 2003
Â
2002-2003 Season
 • February 21, 2003
 • February 2, 2003
 • January 23, 2003
 • January 14, 2003
 • December 31, 2002
 • December 10, 2002 |
Mike Farrell |
|
|
Number 3 all time:
While playing at the Forks Township gym the fall of my sophomore year Drew Dawson was a blooper film waiting to happen. But one play in particular really stands out. Drew's personality is great, and he is, perhaps, the most energetic person I know. The game was really close, and I think that Drew's team was down a couple points. Someone on his team shot the ball and missed terribly. Drew was doing something down on the baseline, no one knows what, but he was standing out of bounds when the ball came his way. He jumped back in bounds to grab the ball, and called a timeout. The face he was making is impossible to describe, and the only really clear thing about the whole disaster was the way he kicked his feet up in the air to make sure that he was in bounds. He then fell flat on his face - only because he had kicked his feet up and now had no way to catch himself. It was true Drew Dawson - it was great.
Number 2 all time:
The number 2 account is pretty similar to the number 1. It happened last year at a preseason scrimmage against Monmouth. I was going up for an offensive rebound, both arms up in the air reaching for the ball. Then all of the sudden, one of the Monmouth players just reached out and pulled my shorts down while I was in mid-jump. I got the offensive rebound, but practically handed the ball back to them when I tried to pull my shorts up. But that wasn't a real game, and, most importantly, it wasn't done by a member of the crowd.
Which takes us to…the Number 1 all time memory on my Desert Island Top 5 list:
The pantsing. This was the greatest thing ever. I have got to give the kid some props; he ran all the way from the other end of the gym, came unnoticed to the free-throw line, tried to yank down my shorts, and then outran the security to get away. But like my game, I keep my shorts tight. The incident reminded me of the new Nike commercial, where the naked guy runs out on the field - hysterical. The performance was obviously inspired, and well thought out - he just couldn't execute. But it is certainly the most daring thing I have ever seen from a fan at a basketball game. That is why it is my number one - congratulations.
Peace
